Early Morning Birding On Chautauqua Lake

A Noble Blue Heron

7:24

7:35

7:46

It's just after 7:00, the sky still dark, and I have been up for an hour.  We did get some rain late yesterday but not much, less than a quarter of an inch.  We did have wind, however, gusting up to 50 or 60 mph or so it seemed, knocking down some small branches in our front yard as well as the cairn that had been standing for a couple of years.  It's 53º and may not get much warmer as the day continues.  I had a good birding morning, catching photos of mallards, coots, a wood duck, and blue heron.  When I started my paddle, it was overcast, then the sun came out and when I finished it was cloudy again.

Only Boat On The Lake

The Beauty Of A Kayak Morning

A Blue Heron

Mallards

Mallards, Reeds, Home

A Female Wood Duck

Yesterday morning, was not much fun as I had an early morning dentist appointment, to get a temporary filling that needed to be made permanent.  It took literally 15 minutes at the most and I was out of there, stopping for coffee in Jamestown at a new coffee shop,  Harvest Time Cafe,
unfortunately, empty except for me.  I then did some shopping at Wegmans since I had not been there in four or five days, a record.  Mondays are a good day because its usually not a busy day, as most of the shoppers are waiting for Senior Tuesday. 

When I got home, Evie was still relaxing with a coffee, enjoying the morning despite the gray skies and wind.  I decided to chop some leaves in our neighbor's yard since they are gone for the year.  So I gassed up a couple of mowers (Evie was going to be mowing later) and cut the lawn, mulching up the leaves.  It felt good to be outside doing something productive which lasted about five hours before the lawn was once again covered with leaves. 

Lunch was easy, the last of the leftover eggplant moussaka and for some reason, I watched Hilary be interviewed on the Graham Norton show, a British talk host.  She was amazingly good, articulate, honest, clear-headed, and knowledgeable.  What a contrast to our current President.  I then got back to my book, took a brief nap and was awakened by Evie, dodging twigs, as she mowed our lawn in the heavy winds. 

Leaves Falleth, Yesterday Morning

And like me, the lawn's wide sweep lasting a few hours before it was filled once again with leaves.  Around 3:30, we took both cars over to the Subaru dealer where I dropped my Outback off to get it checked over before our three-week journey south to Florida and then west to Texas.  On the way back, we stopped at Peterson's Farm Market and picked up a basket of concord grapes for Evie and some tomatoes. 

Rain Finally

More Leaves Falling at 5:30 PM

We then had time to relax in our living room, with a couple of glasses of wine, some hummus, and pita chips and watched it rain for an hour or so as Evie picked out tunes from Apple Music, Nine Inch Nails being our favorite for the night.  We had brats and sauerkraut for dinner, easy and tasty and watched our typical Monday night programs, Vice News and the various news shows. 

Taking Out The Boat Lifts

Waiting For Some Rain

6:50

7:18

7:34

7:35

7:36

It's 7:00 and I have been up for an hour, sitting here in darkness, listening to Sonos and sipping my coffee.  The eastern sky is just becoming visible, lots of streaky dark clouds, highlighted by some pink and cream.  It's going to be a spectacular morning sky.

Sunday Morning On The Lake

Yesterday was not your typical Sunday of rest as we were busy all day, with lots of play and work, filling the day.  We started with an hour of kayaking and photographing birds.  The lake was not quite as calm as the previous couple of days but it was still inspiring to be out on the waters in late October.  A number of fishing boats were out as well, enjoying the mild weather.

Woodlawn

When we got home, we decided to get something done.  We had a couple of old benches sitting in our garage, with the first coat of paint sitting there ready for a second.  So I got them out, put down a tarp, stirred the paint and we painted them for the second time, getting them ready for next summer.  It took us about forty-five minutes.  By the time we finished, it was only 11:00 so we decided to get a walk in at the Chautauqua Institution, our typical Sunday routine.  We stopped at the Lighthouse to pick up some of their breakfast sausage, drove by Linda and Ron's but they were not home, then drove to the CI and had a good forty five minute walk although by the time we got back to our car, with both had worked up a sweat, having dressed too warm. 

Dunkin Goose

We were home just after 1:00 and Evie quickly started frying the sausage while I sawed a couple of boards for the bottom of the benches so they would not rock.  I came in when the eggs, toast and sausage were ready and we watched CBS Sunday Morning while eating a scrumptious breakfast.  Why does Sunday breakfast always taste so good?  Probably because I eat yogurt, chia seeds, and oats for breakfast the other six days. 

I then finished my Richard Russo novel and watched some football, most likely falling asleep but I am not sure.  Evie, meanwhile, had decided to work in the garden and I joined her around 3:00.  She had been doing some major weeding, obsessed with getting that last weed out.  We had bought some perennials in Virginia last weekend and had yet to plant them.  So Evie pointed out where she wanted them and I dug holes, filled them with compost and some water, dropped them in the hole and spread dirt around them.  By 5:00, we were tired out, happy with our plantings and weeding.  Evie went in to start sauteeing some mushrooms for dinner and I put away the tools.

We relaxed with a glass of wine, as Evie was making playlists from Apple Music since we had Apple Music on Sonos blasting the entire morning and afternoon when we were working outside. Since we are the only ones now living in the neighborhood, we could blast the music.  We had put potatoes in the oven earlier and Evie got out two steaks and grilled them on the stove, made a salad and we had the typical American steakhouse dinner, steak, mushrooms, potato, and salad.  We watched a couple of episodes of Grantchester, then some football, news, and ended the evening with an increasingly cheesy Wisdom of The Crowd.  We also watched some of the George Bush dinner from College Station, Texas, as our neighbors, David and Pat, helped put together the feat.  We hoped to see them since they were sitting behind Barbara Bush but to no avail.  I am starting a new book, A Gentleman In Moscow and so far so good.

Sunny Sunday Morning

7:24

7:40

7:47

It's 8:00 and both Evie and I are up drinking coffee, listening to CNN, as the sun shines brightly, highlighting, to Evie's dismay, the streaked front windows.  She has washed them with her magic cloths at least five times to no avail.  Nevertheless, it looks like another stellar day, lots of sunshine, the highs in the 60's if not warmer.  It's 8:40 and both Evie and I are going our for a paddle, another great morning on the lake.

Saturday was typical for us, a few chores, lots of fine weather and a great night out for dinner.  It started with a long paddle, as I was able to follow a raft of coots for quite awhile.  When I got home, Evie was up drinking her coffee, and we finished off the blog and published it, with mucho photographs of the sunrise and waterfowl.  For some reason, I woke with two thoughts in mind, make kuru fasulye (a white bean stew from Turkey) and put together the ingredients for my artisan bread.  So I got out the pressure cooker, added water and a pound of white beans turned it on for 25 minutes and let it cool off slowly until I was ready for the fasulye.  While they cooked, I put together the bread, with flour, oats, flax seed, quinoa, salt, and sugar.  I let it rise for up to 24 hours so I will bake it this morning.  After I was done with the bread, I sauteed some onions, added red pepper and tomato paste, simmered it for 20 minutes, added the beans and water, salted it to taste and it was ready for lunch this week.  It may sound bland but it's not; in fact, in Istanbul, they have restaurants that are strictly fasulye places.

Around noon, we got together the trash and I went through the garage once more, gathering various detritus that I have not used nor needed for years and took them to the Transfer Station.  It was packed when I got there, empty when I left so my timing was poor.  Around 1:00, I had lunch of moussaka, watched some Narcos and football.  Meanwhile, Evie had found things to do in the house and was happy and busy.  It's nice not having things you have to do but things you want to do at your own speed.  After my nap, inspired by Evie, I went out and cleaned up the messy back of my garage, swept it out, getting it ready so I can put my car in it during the winter.

We got ready for our night out around 5:00 and Ron and Linda came over at 5:30.  I then drove to our restaurant, Ribs and Bones, twenty-two miles away in Pennsylvania.  We knew it would be a long drive but it was still daylight and beautiful, as the trees are really starting to turn.  When we got to the restaurant, the parking lot was packed and we worried about getting a seat.  But we had reservations and a table was ready for us in the bar.

A Selfie At Ribs And Bones Bar

This is our first time there so we did not know what to expect.  Fortunately, we loved it, a great menu, a busy bar, with a mix of locals and outsiders like us, with a cabin like ambiance.  Ron and I ordered their ribs, about as good of ribs as we have had and Evie had an amazing pork chop, marinated in apple cider and thyme, with cinnamon poached apples.  We were a happy quartet, and cannot wait to come back in the winter.  We highly recommend it if you don't mind the drive.

We were home around 9:00, in time to watch Real Time With Bill Maher and some of the baseball and football games.  Evie had frozen some of her peach upside down cake, so she warmed it up, put some cream on it and we had a great dessert.  I am almost finished with EMPIRE FALLS, by Richard Russo and am ready to move on.

Pink And Yellow Skies, Quiet Lake

6:49 (notice the evening star, Venus, reflected in the lake)

7:15

7:16

7:55

 Woke at 6:00, wondered if I could get back to sleep but thought, hey, I want to get up in time to see the morning sky, a good choice, as it a vast canvas of a light orange sherbet, with a few waves of gray clouds at 7:00.  And Click And Clack have been replaced after forty or fifty years on NPR by Marketplace Weekend, quite a contrast.  It's a chilly 43º at 7:30  and I am waiting for the sunrise before I put on an extra fleece before I go kayaking.  I'm back and was able to photograph a raft of at least 50 coots over along the Long Point shoreline.

Raft Of Coots

Coot Up Close

Who Is Thie Guy/Girl?

Yesterday was another amazing Fall day on the lake.  I have rarely seen it so calm, ripple less, just one vast glass table.  It was perfect for kayaking, so I was out early, met our neighbors, Jeff and Nancy, also out to enjoy the morning.  When I got back, I had breakfast and Evie had decided to work on the bookcases, taking out all the book, dusting them, Milsek-ing the shelves.  We worked for about 30 minutes when we decided it was nuts to stay inside on a morning like this, so we both went outside and paddled off for an hour or kayaking, both of us taking photographs of whatever wildfowl we could find.  I had seen a different kind of duck earlier in the morning, swimming in front of our house, diving every 30 seconds so that I could not get a good picture of him but I thought he was our first sighting this fall of a coot.  Well, we were able to get a couple of more photos of coots on our paddle, so we are pretty sure it was a coot I saw. 

Another Old Coot

When we got back, we intended on starting once again on the bookshelves but Evie wanted to polish the copper first so I had my lunch, a leftover hoagie and watched more of Narcos.  Just as I finished, I got a call from our boat guy, Chris, to say my boat was ready and he had removed all the seats so that I could take them to the upholsterer.  Although I was less than enthusiastic about driving off it was something I really needed to get done.  I drove down to the northern end of the lake, filled my Outback to the brim with boat seats and drove 20 miles to the Millers, an Amish family who makes boat covers and upholsters seat covers. 

Pot Of Gold Pot Bellies Chocolate Milk

I dropped the seats off, told Mr. Miller I would pick them back up in December and took a long way home, through the Pennsylvania town of Sugar Grove, so I could pick up a half gallon of Pot Of Gold milk and a Pot Bellie of chocolate milk for Evie.  I was gone close to two hours.

Long Point Fall Colors

When I got home, one of the bookshelves was done and Evie was putting the finishing touches on an eggplant moussaka having baked the eggplant, added the tomatoes and a white sauce for the topping.

It was a warm and beautiful evening, so we decided to have a Manhattan on the porch with appetizers, enjoy the late afternoon sun highlighting the trees on Long Point but after forty-five minutes, we went inside as the sun had dipped behind us and the porch became chilly. 

Long Point Fisherman

We had fun listening to music on Apple Music, as Evie was the disc jockey.  Around 7:30, we pulled the moussaka out of the oven and had dinner and tried to find something to watch on TV. 

#NORECIPENEEDED 

We ended up switching back and forth between a couple of cooking and home improvement shows whenever a commercial came on.  We were both tired and going up to bed sounded good. 

That Morning Sky

7:05

7:06

7:10

7:11

7:12

7:16

7:17

7:44

I was up just after 6:00, total darkness until I walked outside and saw a starry morning sky.  By 7:00, however, the sky came alive with some color, mostly orange, which spread from south to north, eventually from Wells Bay to Long Point.  Now, at 7:30, the blue sky is apparent, with some cream colored clouds.  It looks like we have at least three more sunny days before the rain arrives on Monday.  And as you can see, we could not make up our mind what sunrise photos to include so we just added them all.

Victoria/Woodlawn

I just got back from a great morning kayak; I have rarely seen the lake so smooth, not a whisper of a wind, with a few sightings of mallards but that's it.

Sandy Bottom

Mallards

Yesterday morning was busy, starting with breakfast in Bemus, five of us, which is fun but it gets in the way of my morning paddle. C'est la vie.  I knew there were some things I wanted to get done, most importantly, drop my extra bike off at Hollyloft Bike Shop, a donation since I have never used it and I need more room in the garage.  So I drove into Lakewood, got a coffee, a couple dozen eggs and went to Hollyloft who seemed happy to get my donation.  They donate the proceeds to an animal shelter so it goes to a good cause.  I then stopped at Sam's, got an estimate on new tires for my car to compare with the dealer's price but only if I need them.  I then stopped at Wegman's and did a quick run through the store, picking up whatever I thought we might need since I did not have a list.  I only forgot one thing, some bread, but I did get six bagels which should suffice.

When I got home, Evie was into deep cleaning, both our porch and living room.  And she realized that our couch, twenty-two years old, has probably seen its last days. Yuk.  After putting things away, I drove to Mayville, to the Marina on Sea Lion Drive, to check out my boat and make sure we could get the seats out of the boat to get them redone.  I will pick them up once Chris gets them out and take them to Millers, an Amish guy near the PA state line.  I stopped at the Lighthouse for a sub, strangely quiet at lunchtime and came home.  Evie was almost finished with the living room so she was able to get outside and enjoy some of the sunshine in the early afternoon.  I had my sub and watched the first episode of Season 3 of Narcos.  I then tried to take a nap without much success.  So I read and took it easy although I should have gone for a paddle but was too lazy, neither paddling, biking, or walking, a lazy day.

We both took showers and got cleaned up around 3:30 and picked our neighbors, Ken and Marjorie up at 4:30 because we were driving to the Allegheny National Forest, to enjoy the new boardwalk and see the leaves before going out to dinner at the Horseshoe Inn.  It's a good 45-minute drive but pleasant because of the hills, the leaves, and the still muted colors.

Allegehney Forest With Marjorie And Ken

We enjoyed the stop at the new boardwalk over a pond and wetlands but we did not see any waterfowl.  We then drove to the Art Roscoe Ski Center where all the hiking and cross-country ski trails begin before getting back on #86 and getting off at the Steamburg exit to drive another 8 miles to the Horseshoe.

Boardwalk At Allegheny State Forest

It was a good choice, as Ken and Marjorie loved the ambiance, a couple of hundred rifles from the past century covering the walls.  And Jamie, the owner, and our waitress recognized Evie and me from our previous visits and told us about the history of the restaurant, how she ended up with a gun filled restaurant.  We got beers, burgers, and fries, all good and pie a la mode for dessert.  It was a good choice.  We only wish it was closer.

Wetlands At 5:30

Allegheny Forest

We didn't get home until after 9:00, in time to watch some Vice News and listen to CNN talk about the latest Trump gaff and Fox talk about the Obama/Hillary uranium scandal, not so new news.  It was a pleasure to get back to Richard Russo's EMPIRE FALLS.